I was a customer way back when they first started. There were a number of issues which were eclipsed by Amazons offering when they began selling the same thing

I was a customer way back when they first started. There were a number of issues which were eclipsed by Amazons offering when they began selling the same things: Shipping was glacially slow. Products were packaged poorly and would often arrive with opened and broken bottles which spilled contents over your other products ordered. The prices were not competitive with purchasing from cvs or target with discounts. Amazon subscriptions gives you discounts. One advantage they had at the time was you didn't have to order 6 shampoos. Amazon now does the same with their add-on service. The only way it made sense was their initial 50% off gift cards. After that the convenience factor didn't outweigh the price, especially compared to Amazons offering in the space shortly after.